Brokeback Mountain: Our Community's Common Bond > Heath Ledger Remembrance Forum
The Dark Knight: News, Reviews, your Views. "SPOILERS" welcome!
Marge_Innavera:
--- Quote from: ednbarby on July 24, 2008, 12:08:17 pm ---I was going to say the same thing - there are two or three different times he's called "a freak" and he defiantly, but quietly says "No, I'm not. I'm not..." If he were a true sociopath and misanthrope, he'd have laughed at that or not even batted an eyelash. But there is definitely an element of wanting to be appreciated for exactly what he is. And he's not. And that is the loneliest thing there is.
--- End quote ---
I'm not sure that would be the motivation. IMO the Joker's denial of being a freak would be fairly typical of a sociopath who's not in the mood to hide it.
At one point, the Joker remarks that he prefers to kill with a knife rather than a gun because guns can kill quickly and without personal contact -- and because, he says, at the moment of death 'people act the way they really are.' (Sorry, this is a paraphrase -- have only seen the movie once so far.) In some ways, that summarizes his relationship with the rest of the world.
Enough pain and stress and terror can reduce anyone to acting on their basest survival instincts. That's not all we are, but to a sociopath, those lowest common denominators are what define a human being. And a violent sociopath like the Joker could be convinced that he's the only one around who's superior enough to come to terms with that and even to celebrate it via spreading chaos. In other words, the Joker is convinced that he's not a freak because he's convinced that everyone is just like him -- only less smart and more in need of illusions, which essentially makes them (in his mind) inferior beings to be disposed of in whatever way he finds entertaining.
That's an thumbnail of my reaction to this character -- I saw TDK for the first time yesterday and am still thinking over what I want to post about it.
Marge_Innavera:
--- Quote from: BayCityJohn on July 25, 2008, 02:23:56 am ---Profiles In History is auctioning off a coat worn by Heath Ledger in 'The Patriot' The auction is July 31 and Aug 1
This item is scheduled to be auctioned on Aug 1.
26901 Agoura Rd Ste 150
Calabasas Hills, CA 91301
http://www.profilesinhistory.com/new
--- End quote ---
Hope a Brokie buys it!
That's my favorite period of history and the costume itself has its own history.
Brown Eyes:
I'm going to go see TDK again this weekend before I post any kind of extensive review here. So much goes on in that movie, I really do think that a second viewing will be important to noticing details and to taking in the dialogue more accurately.
My initial reaction was really positive. I thought it was a fabulous movie and it was definitely thought provoking in all kinds of ways.
Forgive me if this detail is discussed elsewhere in this thread... but I just need to comment on the one scene where the Joker is in the body bag, they unzip it and then he sits up to surprise everyone. Yikes!! That scene just about killed me... specifically with Heath's real life tragedy in mind. It's just too, too terrible in juxtaposition with the news clips of Heath being taken out of the apartment. That scene has already given me a nightmare. One some level I'm almost surprised they left it in. It's really effective as a scene... but still, it's just so surreal!
:'(
LauraGigs:
Yeah, when he lies still when they take the bag off his face, that was hard to take.
Mandy21:
I saw TDK on Monday morning, and yes, the death stuff was hard to take. Like you, Amanda, I was a bit surprised that they left those scenes in. After having seen it only once, I've yet to decide if those scenes were so integral, that they couldn't have been left out, even for respect for Heath's memory. I was in tears; thankfully, I was in the back row, and managed to keep it pretty quiet. But in tears, nevertheless. When you think about it, though, pretty much every movie Heath ever made involved either his character dying, or coming very close to death. The Patriot, Monster's Ball, Four Feathers, Ned Kelly, Brothers Grimm, etc. They're all much harder to watch post-Jan 22 than they were before. I've not decided if I'll see TDK again or not. To me, the only part of that very long movie that I found enjoyable were the scenes with The Joker. Gave me goosebumps, in a good way, every time he came on screen. I thought Heath's was a masterful performance, but that it was rather wasted in a film I found to be quite unspectacular. Just my opinion. Perhaps I've just seen one too many comic-book movies. :-\
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